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Vilcaen (Goblin)
A special thanks to Fabein_DeSonnt for filling out the entire race sheet! History Vilcaen history is hardly on the lips and minds of every person in Faerune, but it’s there if you look for it, or happen to be another Vilcaen, or beat it out of a Vilcaen. Vilcaen history trails all the way back into myth, where their creation myth as it were, is unsurprisingly well attuned to their general racial profile. The myth states that the first Vilcaen was not the strongest, the hardiest, nor the most intelligent creature there ever was. What that Vilcaen did have however, was cunning. Through a mixture of pragmatism and cunning the first Vilcaen managed to out-manoeuvre –and where relevant, sometimes outrun – other creatures, making off with various things that belonged to them, and receding into the less pleasant locales to enjoy the spoils. Sure, sometimes the first Vilcaen was caught and paid for his mischief, but not often, and no one ever got back what he had taken, because he was far too wily, and hid things far too well. Eventually the first Vilcaen started to feel hubris, and on the tail of that hubris came the notion that he was too clever, too cunning for the other creatures, and a perceived sense of boredom set in – stealing things didn’t seem as rewarding, evading capture seemed run-of-the-mill in its easy routine. It was then that the first Vilcaen’s cunning sparked, and a brilliant idea was formed. Having stolen, seen, and experienced many things, the first Vilcaen hit upon the idea of using some old magics to create a copy of itself – what better companion and rival than another of himself? The idea filled the first Vilcaen with childish glee, and a full year later, the second Vilcaen, copy of the first, crawled from its cracked crust of magical grime and stared out across the world. To the glee of the first Vilcaen, the second needed no teaching, it knew everything it needed to from the moment of its waking, and this is the point at which the first and second Vilcaens took names, or so the myths say. The first became Iklimhik and the second was dubbed Skierhek. And so they competed against one another for a long time, each one grasping a victory only to have to turned aside or outdone by the other shortly after – in Skierhek, Iklimhik had truly outdone himself – they were equally capable and cunning. This realisation came to both of them eventually, and they came together to discuss it, and came upon the most cunning idea any Vilcaen had ever had yet. They would use the magics that had created Skierhek, and create a lesser people, based upon themselves, but were blank slates, given the chance to diversify, no copies this time. Skierhek would create half of them, and so would Iklimhik, and then they would be left to their own devices. The premise of the game was to see whose creations would come out more resourceful, more cunning, without any knowledge of which of the two was their creator and without the benefit of either of the original Vilcaens’ knowledge. The new Vilcaens populated and bred, and the two original Vilcaens retired from the scene, known only in folklore, said to be watching the Vilcaen people and waiting to see which bloodline would perform the ultimate act of cunning and secure a final victory for their creator. It is said that the original Vilcaens’ bodies long since gave up back in the mists of ancient history, but their spirits transcended the bounds of death, and even now watch their hap-hazard created children and await the results that vindicate them. With such figures as their origin, Vilcaen history is predictably, not that interesting in the sense of writing epic sagas or tales of heroism. There have been few Vilcaen kings, and no heroes in the sense that other races might consider them. There have been, however, many great Vilcaen spies, saboteurs, gamblers and various other professions that require cunning and thinking on your feet. Historically Vilcaens have retained small settlements that are generally pretty stable – while they are in a constant state of pseudo political flux, most creatures don’t bother raiding Vilcaen settlements that rarely have anything worth taking –or anything you can find anyway- so while they are not economically intimidating, they tend to get by. Habitat Most Vilcaens tend to live in settlements or mobile bands depending on location; it is said that they can live anywhere, and this is a blessing of the two original Vilcaens, although whether that is the case or not is anyone’s guess. They tend to favour wetlands, or harsh, rock environs where it is undesirable to go, or easier to defend respectively. Notes Due to the belief that pulling a trick or heist on someone is of merit, Vilcaen communities tend to have a fractious, unstable element, although not out of aggression like the Orcs might have. Vilcaens respect cunning and a good ploy above all else, but to be subject to one demands retaliation, so most Vilcaen communities are pseudo political in their pursuit of one-upmanship, some settlements breaking in to ‘parties’ to oppose each other. Note that this isn’t a sort of constant war – the best ploy is one that no one sees coming after all, and biding your time is a classic plotting element. Age A Vilcaen with a good run will go about fifty to sixty years Height Vilcaens tend to come in at the four feet mark Weight 60 - 80 pounds. Diet Vilcaens are omnivorous and as such can eat most anything (including some things your average human would go green thinking about) Breeding Vilcaens are rather primitive in this regard, and typically a declaration of courtship is stealing something suitably impressive and presenting it to the desired, or stealing said person outright. Curiously this works both ways, Vilcaens are not very gender specific in who approaches who to declare intent for courtship. Reproduction is functionally the same as humans in conception, development and birth. There is no record of cross-species conception with Vilcaens, but it is possible it has happened. Category:Races